Taylor Gold Label 814e Koa Acoustic-Electric Guitar - Natural

Gold Label 814e Koa

6-String | Sitka Spruce Top | Hawaiian Koa Back and Sides | Neo-Tropical Mahogany Neck | West African Crelicam Ebony Fretboard | LR Baggs - Element VTC Electronics | Non-cutaway | Taylor Deluxe Hardshell Brown Case

Designed by Andy Powers to produce a new voice rich with seasoned warmth and power, the new Gold Label 814e Koa introduces players to a new kind of sound inspired by the classic sounds of the vintage era. This model features a new body shape we're calling the Super Auditorium, which resembles our Grand Auditorium but with slightly wider contours that help coax out more volume and greater low-end presence. Hawaiian koa back and sides paired with a torrefied Sitka spruce top generate stunning midrange power and richness complemented by warmth and depth usually only found in older, more played-in guitars. Inside, a fanned variant of our V-Class bracing helps add even more volume and sustain while maintaining focus and clarity even at the highest volumes. A new long-tenon neck joint adds to the litany of innovations, improving sonic transfer for greater resonance and easy adjustability. The Gold Label 814e Koa sports a striking appointment package headlined by our new Continental inlays, a new pickguard design, a Honduran rosewood bridge, grained ivoroid trim, and antique chrome Gotoh 510 tuners with ebony buttons, while a full-body gloss showcases koa's natural highlights and variegation. This model ships with LR Baggs Element VTC electronics and a deluxe hardshell case with a British Cocoa exterior.

Overview

• Hawaiian koa back and sides yield a rich midrange presence
• Torrefied Sitka spruce top adds aged-in sweetness and depth
• Super Auditorium body for exceptional power, focus, and warmth
• Long-tenon neck joint for improved resonance
• Features LR Baggs Element VTC pickup and hardshell case

FEATURES

Gold Label Innovation Meets Stunning Koa Tone

Our new Super Auditorium body shape and fanned V-Class bracing combine with Koa's midrange sparkle for a powerful sound with unmatched focus and clarity.

Super Auditorium

A new take on Taylor’s signature Grand Auditorium body shape, the Super Auditorium is designed to produce a uniquely warm, deep voice with an old-heritage character.

• Designed and released by Andy Powers in 2025 with the introduction of the Gold Label Collection
• Rich, deep low-end response with round, woody trebles—a full-bodied voice across the tonal spectrum
• Exceptional power and dynamic range—you can play softly or really dig in and get a warm response 
   

Building on the versatility, balance, and clarity that players have come to love from Bob Taylor’s Grand Auditorium body shape, consider the Super Auditorium an evolution of that playing experience that incorporates all the benefits of the V-Class bracing architecture developed by Andy Powers. With curves and contours that draw on Bob’s design but with a slightly longer body and wider lower bout, the Super Auditorium will feel familiar while adding a new sonic dimension inspired by guitars from the 1930s and ’40s. With a focus on warmth, the Super Auditorium produces an open, blooming voice that produces room-filling tone with a light touch while gaining power as you dig in. Inside, a fanned V-Class variant enhances the depth and resonance, enhancing the volume and sustain while ensuring pitch accuracy all the way up the neck.

Specifications:  Body Length: 20 3/16" / Body Width: 16 1/4" / Body Depth: 4 1/2"

Hawaiian Koa

A dense tropical hardwood, koa blends midrange focus with extra top-end brightness and chime. The more a koa guitar is played and opens up — especially an all-koa guitar — the more its midrange overtones add warmth and sweetness to its voice.

Origin:  Hawaii

Sound: Koa's tone profile blends the midrange of mahogany with the top end of maple. Due to its density, a new Koa guitar tends to start out sounding a little bright and tight, somewhat like maple. But the more a koa guitar is played, the more the sound opens up, expanding the midrange and rewarding the player with a richer, sweeter, more resonant tone. A common mistake is when a bright player buys a koa guitar in part for its visual beauty, finds it to be too bright, and doesn't play it enough to allow the wood to warm up.

Goes Well With: Fingerstylists who play more with the pads of their fingers and tend to have a meatier touch. Bright players may want to experiment with different pick materials to produce a warmer tone.

Sitka Spruce

As a guitar soundboard or top, Sitka spruce is the tonewood standard of the modern era. It’s used on 85-90 percent of the guitars that Taylor makes. Its combination of strength and elasticity translates into a broad dynamic range, yielding crisp articulation and allowing for everything from aggressive strumming and flatpicking to fingerpicking. Sitka spruce is Bob Taylor’s personal favorite for an all-around great guitar.

Origin:  Canada

Goes Well With: All styles of guitars and players.

SPECIFICATIONS

HIGHLIGHTS

• Number of Strings: 6 String
• Orientation: Right Handed
• Body Shape: Super Auditorium
• Bracing System: Fanned V-Class with Tonal Route
• Cutaway: Non-cutaway
• Color: Natural
• Electronics: LR Baggs - Element VTC
• Case/Bag: Taylor Deluxe Hardshell Brown

BODY

• Top Wood: Sitka Spruce
• Back/Side Wood: Honduran Rosewood
• Rosette: Custom Single Ring, Bound Sound Hole
• Back Configuration: 2-piece or 4-piece Simons Wedge
• Body Binding: .080" Grained Ivoroid, Round Over Edges
• Top Finish: Gloss
• Back/Side Finish: Gloss

NECK

• Neck Wood: Neo-Tropical Mahogany
• Fretboard Wood: West African Crelicam Ebony
• Neck Profile: Standard Carve
• Fretboard Inlay: Mother-of-Pearl Continental
• Fretboard Binding: West African Crelicam Ebony
• Neck Finish: Satin

PEGHEAD

• Nut Width: 1-3/4"
• Peghead Veneer Wood: West African Crelicam Ebony
• Scale Length: 25-1/2"
• Peghead Inlay: Mother-of-Pearl Continental
• Peghead Type: Paddle
• Peghead Finish: Gloss

OTHER

• Bridge: Honduran Rosewood
• Nut & Saddle: White TUSQ Nut, White Micarta Saddle
• Bridge Pins: Bone
• Strings: D'Addario XS Coated Phosphor Bronze Light (.012 - .053)
• Pickguard: Ivoroid/Tortoise, with Engraving
• Tuners: Gotoh 510 Antique Chrome with Ebony EN01 Buttons
• Strap Pin: Black